Tips for Applicants

As a recruiter I see many mistakes made on applications. Many of these errors could be easily prevented but keep applicants’ applications from being forwarded to the hiring manager. Below is a list of tips for applicants throughout this process.

­Complete the entire application – many applicants upload a resume but do not fill in the missing information throughout the application. In many situations the application will not reflect the reason the applicant left previous employers, education, and certifications that may be required for the job. The application should also include all relevant work history, not just the most recent position. Just because the information is on your resume does not mean it does not need to be on the application. In addition, applicants should be sure that the auto-population from resume to application fills in correctly – it is a great tool but does not compare to human eyes proofreading for errors.

­ Attach an accurate resume – to ensure that complete job history is present. The resume is the applicants’ opportunity to display more than just work history but to include awards, education information, certifications, and more detailed job duties that will fit on the application.

­ Write a customized cover letter – that is appropriate for each specific job. Many applicants use the same cover letter for each job application without editing the job title or person to whom the letter is addressed. This is a big red flag for recruiters as the applicant appears uninterested in that particular position and has not taken the time to write a new cover letter.

­ Use proper capitalization – on your resume and application. Many applicants either do not capitalize anything on their application or complete the entire application in all capital letters. This indicates a potential lack of computer proficiency to the recruiter which, depending on the position for which you apply, may keep your application from being forwarded to the hiring manager.

­ Use an appropriate and valid e-mail address – on your application. Keep in mind that this e-mail address will be seen by the recruiter, the hiring manager, and anyone who interviews you. If your regular e-mail address is not something you would consider professional, create a new e-mail address to put on your application. The GBMC/Gilchrist Hospice Care career site gives instructions for creating a free e-mail address. Be sure that you type the e-mail address in correctly as many recruiters use this as the main form of communication with applicants up until the interview process.

­ Provide licensure and certification information – on the application and on your resume. Searching for a candidate’s name in a licensure database does not always work if the person’s name has middle initials, hyphenations, or a suffix. Adding this information with your valid license number makes the search easier for recruiters. Certifications are important also because they often make you a more qualified candidate that someone without a certification.

­ Update your application each time you apply for a new job – to be sure that dates and information is still accurate. Many candidates apply for a job and complete the application correctly, then apply again four months later and make no changes to the form. This often makes it look like someone left their job four months ago with no explanation, when the application says “to present” for that position with the wrong dates.

­ INTERNAL CANDIDATES should apply through the GBMC/Gilchrist Hospice Care InfoWeb – so that they appear as a transfer. Many recruiters look to these first, as they are flagged with red text in our system, to give internal candidates an opportunity for transfer or promotion. This also makes the process more streamlined for us because you are asked to provide your current position, current manager, current shift, and employee number.

I hope that these tips are helpful in your job application process. Keep in mind that these tips apply to any position for which you apply, not just at GBMC/Gilchrist Hospice Care. Portraying yourself as a viable, conscientious, and qualified candidate are important to ensuring you proceed into the interview process.